Rita's POV

"Madam." I hear a voice say tentatively but I'm too deep in my thoughts to respond.

How could I have been so stupid? Entertaining and indulging Cameron's shit until this moment; being so blind to the fact that I was married to a man who loved and cared for me less than I did for him.

Where did we go wrong? Where did I go wrong? And why didn't I notice this developing pattern earlier on?

I guess the answer is simple, love. At some point, I had deluded myself into thinking that his behavior was okay, that I was overreacting, overthinking things. That marriages go through several storms and troubles, I didn't expect perfection and smooth sailing ease all the time, did I?

No, but I did expect to be respected in my own-

"Madam!" The voice repeats, louder this time and it's enough to jolt me back to the present.

"Is she okay?" I hear Amaka whisper to Ore.

I look up to see worry etched on Ore's face and the hint of fear in her eyes. I must've zoned out so I give her a forced, close lipped smile to reassure her that I'm okay. "Do you need something?"

"No, ma. We don finish cleaning everywhere." She informs me, gesturing to the now spotless dining area.

The girl she brought with her who introduced herself as Amaka, stands behind her, staring at me with her hands folded nervously in her front. I can't imagine how crazy I look right now to cause them to be frightened. I guess it's only right seeing as I feel crazy.

"Thank you so much for coming on such short notice." I acknowledge as I pick up my purse that I had dropped beside me on the couch.

After peeling out several one thousand naira notes, I give Ore who receives it gratefully. The two of them turn to leave but Ore pauses before looking at me. "Is everything alright, Ma?" She asks tightly.

"Everything is fine." Is my reply in my most reassuring voice, the heavy lie in that sentence unbeknownst to them.

I stand up to see the girls out, closing the door behind them. With a deep sigh, I head back inside. My phone pings loudly and I immediately pick it up from the glass table, expecting to see Cameron's name but I see a message from Temi to our Groupchat instead.

Tems: LUNCH AT LOTUS CAFE BY 2 PM!!!

The message makes me curious as I briefly wonder what's wrong. Myself and the other girls who express it on the group. With a sigh, I decide to head upstairs to shower and get ready.

Last night, I ended up staying downstairs after I lost the battle with sleep while trying to stay up and wait for Cameron who never showed up. Now as I walk into the room for the first time since yesterday and my eyes are met with the roses that I had decorated the floor and bed with, I begin to get angry all over again, my teeth clenching tightly.

Him traveling constantly was something I could overlook, but this? This type of blatant disrespect was not something I was going to tolerate.

Since he'd much rather spend time away from home without checking in with me, forgetting that he even has a wife at home, well, he might as well sleep there.

With anger cursing through my veins, I pull out the medium sized box that Cameron uses a lot on his trips and I begin shoving his clothes into them, not caring if they'll get rumpled. That's the last thing on my mind and he should be grateful that I'm even doing this. I put in just enough clothes to last him a while, if he gets tired of repeating them then he's going to have to buy himself some more.

After dumping the clothes in there anyhow, I zip the box closed and roll it outside the room with the plan to take it down later.

I quickly hop in the shower since I have only an hour before this emergency lunch with my friends. After I come out, I dry up and moisturize, going through the motions like a robot.

My mind seemed to be all over the place, and no where at the same time. I felt numb, physically tired and mentally drained.

I got dressed in a black long sleeved body con dress and dark brown coat before my making my way back downstairs with Cameron's box in hand. The luggage was fairly heavy so it was a bit of a struggle getting it down the stairs and taking it outside but I did before going back upstairs and getting my purse and shoes.

Picking up my car and house keys, I step out of the house and lock the door behind me. Just then, the gate was pulled open by Jacob and I watched the familiar jeep that belonged to my husband drive in. Perfect timing.

Thankfully, he didn't park behind me as he parked beside my car instead before stepping out. I waited patiently for him to approach me which he did, his blue suit jacket folded across his arm, and his shirt shriveled up with the first few buttons opened. He had bags under his eyes and he looked beat.

I almost felt my resolve weaken as I stared at him but I dismissed it as I remember how sick with worry I was last night. Worry that something had happened to him, maybe that's why he hasn't called, I had thought to myself. Then it had switched to worry that my husband was off fucking some other bitch, that would certainly explain what the fuck he was up to last night.

But now, I wasn't in the mood for any explanation or excuse. Whatever kept him away last night of all nights, he should keep that information to himself.

But then he opened his mouth to explain. "Babe, I'm sorry, I got caught up-"

I held up my hand to shut him up. "Save it." I snap and he purses his lips, his eyes never leaving mine. "I don't care where you were last night or what you got caught up in. That's your business. You can go back there. I'm sure whoever you were with would love to have you back."

Confusion filled his eyes as they shifted from me, to his box near the door. I wasn't waiting around to find out what he had to say for himself as I held on to my purse tightly and pressed the key fob in my hand to open my car. I pulled the door open but suddenly it was slammed shut as Cameron stood beside me, the anger in his eyes barely masked.

His jaw ticked as he closed his eyes to control himself before staring at me, "What the fuck, Rita? I don't come home one night and you're kicking me out of the house?"

"Yes, Cam. That's exactly what I'm doing." I tell him, spacing out my words like I'm talking to a child. Since he needs me to break everything down for him, he might as well be one. "I don't have time for this. You can go back to whatever woman you were with last night." Saying that last part out loud inflicted pain in my chest. Saying it out loud made the possibility that my husband was indeed with a woman last night all the more real, a thought that I didn't want to even think about.

A look of confusion is etched on Cameron's face, his nose pinched. "Wo-what woman?" He sputters out. "You're tripping right now, Rita, you know that right?"

Ignoring him, I go to open the door again and when he slams it close, I glare at him sharply.

"You can't kick me out of my own house, Rita." He bites out.

Releasing a humorless chuckle, I tell him, "I can, and I am. With good reason too. Maybe this will serve as a lesson to you around this time next year if we even make it that far."

Cameron stares at me, his face scrunched up as he tries to understand what I'm saying. The moment when he realizes, I know. I see his eyes widen slightly as it finally sets in. Kissing my teeth loudly, I pull the door open and get in and thankfully, this time he doesn't stop me.

On the drive to Lotus Cafe I try not to think too deeply about this issue. Some part of me is telling me that I'm overreacting. That me kicking him out of the house is too much.

But another part of me is deeply hurt. I feel like if it were just last night that he had been acting off, I probably would have overlooked it, possibly. But this is something that has been going on and I've been noticing. The turning off of his phone whenever I'm around, the constant 'business' trips. I'm not accusing him of anything, I would really like to just talk to him about the way I'm feeling. But not today.

You can't run away from your problems, Rita, my conscience tells me but I ignore it. I'm not running away, I'm just not ready to face them.

It doesn't take long before I'm pulling into the parking lot of the compound that housed other businesses including Lotus Cafe. I headed into the building after making sure my car was properly locked and I found myself dreading walking in there. I wasn't really in the mood to be around other people, nevertheless that they are my friends. I'd much rather be in the comfort of my bedroom, rewatching Power and eating ice cream.

Releasing a sigh, I push the glass entry door and made my way in. I found Chioma seated at a table at the back of the room when directed there by the maitre d'.

She was on her phone but when I pulled out the chair opposite her, she looked up and smiled, dropping the device on the table beside her. "I'm actually surprised to see you here. Must've been a struggle to pull yourself out of bed." She joked, winking at me playfully.

I was then reminded again of the plans I'd told her I had yesterday, a frown coming to my forehead. I refrain from giving a response, occupying myself with dropping my bag on the table and pulling out the drink menus instead. I'm gonna need something strong.

"What's wrong?" Chichi asks in a worried tone, immediately sensing my mood.

I open my mouth to speak but the chair on my left is pulled out and Temi's lithe form slips in. She has on blue boyfriend jeans and a yellow crisscross crop top. Her braids are piled on top of her head and although she doesn't have on any makeup, her skin is glowing as she gives us a radiant smile.

"Hey, guys!" Temi beams.

I have to force myself to give an almost enthusiastic greeting, not wanting to spoil her mood with my foul one.

Chichi stares at her suspiciously. "This one you're smiling like this, are you pregnant?"

Temi rolls her eyes playfully. "No. I'm not getting pregnant until I get married."

Chichi hums at that, her hand rubbing at her heavily protruding belly. "So, why are you so happy?"

Her eyes move to me, then to Chichi before letting out an excited squeal as she pulls up her left hand. The diamond ring on her fourth finger shining in the light, the jewel looking to be nothing short of three carats.

My eyes widen at that before a genuine smile comes to my face. "Oh my God!"

Temi smiles too, her eyes gleaming with tears. "I know. He popped the question last night."

"Babygirl, I'm so happy for you!" Chichi exclaims, shifting to pull her into a quick hug, mindful of her belly.

After they are done, I pull my best friend into a long hug, her crying spell transferring to me as I feel my eyes brimming with tears. Happy tears, melancholic tears.

I'm ecstatic that all my girls are happy and more so, with men they love, and that they are all financially stable in their lives. And then I feel my mood turning pensive as I wonder about my own life, about my own marriage.

It's going to get worse before it gets better, a voice in my head whispers.

Realizing that we'd been holding on to each other for a moment too long, I pull away from Temi. This is her moment and I force myself to focus on her and put the events of the past twenty four hours at the back of my mind.

Dabbing at my eyes with a tissue, I ask her, "So, how did he propose?"

An excited grin comes to her face, her eyes lighting up. "It was so low key and unexpected. Tosin just bought me this huge box of chocolates, you know I'm obsessed, and I had it all to myself as we watched a movie. When I was almost done with the box, I felt the ring inside. I damn near could've swallowed the thing had I not looked. And then he asked me to marry him and I almost died!"

A melodic laughter escapes her lips as I find myself grinning widely at the clear expression of her joy.

"I'm so happy for you guys," Chichi says before clapping excitedly. "Now we have two weddings to plan! You and Mimi are in for it." She tells me and I shake my head.

I'm not even worried about that.

We go on chatting and talking about weddings and marriage and I'm happy to see my girls excited at the prospect of becoming wives, meanwhile I am a wife and I'm not sharing their sentiments of how it should be at all.

We ordered and I got a glass of Chapman with extra alcohol in it. It wasn't enough, but I did not want to gain attention by ordering something stronger this early afternoon. Before thinking too deep into it, I find myself pulling out my phone and opening a message log for Idris and I. It's empty as I begin typing in:

Is your offer for drinks still on the table?

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It's been a minute! I know, my bad. I'm back now and I hope you enjoyed this chapter.

Do you think that Rita is thinking too deep into what Cameron did? Overreacting, perhaps?

And Cameron outrightly lying about where he was, hmm.

Also, do you think Rita taking up Idris' offer can be considered as impulsive, or is it warranted?

Please don't forget to vote and comment your thoughts, also follow me to be notified when I update a new chapter.

Till next time, stay safe!❤️